An asymptotic analysis of the two-dimensional turbulent near-wake flow behi
nd a Rat plate with sharp trailing edge has been formulated, The feature th
at the near-wake, which is dominated by the mixing of the oncoming turbulen
t boundary layers retains, to a large extent, the memory of the turbulent s
tructure of the upstream boundary layer has been exploited to develop the a
nalysis. This analysis leads to two regions of the near-wake flow (the inne
r near-wake and the outer near-wake) for which the governing equations are
derived. The matching conditions among these regions lead to a logarithmic
variation in the normal direction in the overlapping region surrounding the
inner near-wake. These features are validated by the available experimenta
l data. Similarity solutions for the velocity distribution (which satisfy t
he required matching conditions) in the inner near-wake and outer near-wake
regions have been obtained by making the appropriate eddy-viscosity assump
tions, Uniformly valid solutions for velocity distribution have been constr
ucted for the near-wake. The solutions show good agreement with available e
xperimental data. (C) Elsevier, Paris.